Massage Therapy job outlook in Rhode Island

Outside of New England, Rhode Island is probably most identified for being the smallest state in the United States. Whether this is a positive, negative or indifferent distinction, it is a characteristic that makes the state more widely known. Within New England, people might tell you that this small state has some of the most attractive waterfront property in the country and that it has one of the top universities in the country. There are other characteristics that make this small treasure worth discovering, but that's another story.

The questions we want to answer deals with the state of massage therapist jobs in the state. Though it has a relatively small population, Rhode Island still has enough customers to keep a good number of therapists employed. Currently the biggest detraction to practicing in Rhode Island is a sluggish overall job market, which is limiting the demand for many service industries. So while the weekend warrior who usually gets a massage after a workout may be cutting back, there is another group of customers that is not cutting back.

The growth of the segment of the populous using massage in this country as a medical treatment has meant an exponential increase in the number of therapists. It is this population group that continues to fuel the demand for massage therapists in Rhode Island. Also, the average income of workers who have not fallen victim to job cuts in the state continues to rank well when compared to the national average, meaning that the massage at the spa or the health club has not been totally eliminated. Another plus for massage therapist lies in the state's large percentage of wealthy citizens for whom the recession has not significantly reduced spending. Add to that a healthy tourist population that uses the services of massage therapists through hotels and spas and you can see how the demand for massages is holding steady in the state.

There are plenty of massage therapy training programs within the borders of Rhode Island and even more when you include the adjacent states. Massage professionals practicing in Rhode Island are regulated by the state, which requires that therapists have 500 hours of course work before being allowed to take the National Certification Exam for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork. Therapists must have extensive knowledge of anatomy and physiology and any certified course of study should provide this as well as a close study of pathology, kinesiology and business as it relates to the massage industry and certification and licensing.

The cost of a massage in Rhode Island is in accord with the pricing in other states. Customers can expect to pay about $60 an hour for a standard massage. Special aromatherapy massages and hot stone massages may cost more. Sometimes these more elaborate sessions can cost several hundred dollars in more exclusive spas. Again, since massage is an accepted medical treatment, in many cases insurance companies will pay for the services of therapists, making patients less likely to forego massage treatments when a doctor recommends them. The good news for massage therapists in Rhode Island is that the demand for their services is predicted to increase for most of the current decade.